1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to terrain crossing mechanisms, and more specifically, to an omni-directional terrain crossing mechanism.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, there are more and more studies of mobile robots due to the needs of searching, rescuing, scouting and so forth. Some types of mobile robots (such as wheel, leg, claw, caterpillar, snake-liked and hybrid types of robots) have been developed in order to be adapted to different terrain environments.
However, most of the current mobile robots are not widely applicable to various challenging terrain environments, and have high consumption of energy.
For example, as shown in FIG. 1, a legged robot 9 including a plurality of legs 91 is adaptable to various terrain environments. However, the design of the legged robot 9 is complicated, and high power and torque are required. Besides, the legged robot 9 is very likely to slip or fall, as compared with other types of robots.
A wheeled robot may be more easily designed, as compared to the legged robot. The wheeled robot has high moving efficiency when moving on the flat ground. Nevertheless, it is less adaptable to uneven terrain or stairways.
In addition, a hybrid robot with the advantages of the legged robot and the wheeled robot has been widely studied in recent years. The hybrid robot may be categorized into four types: (a) a robot with a wheel attached to the end of each leg; (b) a robot with wheels and legs installed separately; (c) a robot with a rimless wheel mechanism acting as a leg; and (d) a hybrid robot with wheels transformable into legs.
The aforesaid hybrid robot has different modes, and may switch between different modes based on different circumstances. However, the hybrid robot requires quite a number of actuators. In other words, the hybrid robot is considerably complicated in terms of design, construction, control and maintenance. The cost of the hybrid robot may be substantially higher, as compared to the legged robot and the wheeled robot.
Hence, there is a need to design an automatic machine capable of moving in terrain environments in terms of cost effectiveness, uncomplicated design, versatility, accuracy and sensitiveness.